The Enneagram In a Nutshell

The word enneagram (pronounced any-ah-gram) comes from the Greek words enneas, meaning nine and gramos, meaning drawing.The Enneagram is simply a drawing with nine lines or points. The Enneagram of Personalities is based upon a 2000+ year old Sufi belief whose modern adaptation reached the U.S. in the 1970’s.It focuses on finding one’s self as one of nine distinct enneagramic types. This process of self discovery reveals the subconscious motivation behind the behavior of each of the nine types.Once these subconscious habits are part of one’s consciousness, then the range responses to a given situation expand dramatically (i.e.: we can begin to remove our ego-based filters which obscure our vision of reality)

Gut Center (Types 9, 8 & 1) :People who tend to be very blunt and to the point. Their emotions run very close to their surface. When under stress or forced to take a defensive posture, gut center people become insecure about themselves. Gut center types tend to be driven by their sensations (physical survival, action, reaction, authenticity); either by avoiding them or seeking them out and confronting them.

Head Center (Types 6, 5 & 7): People who tend to be very thoughtful and seem to posses (at least in the view of other people) a purpose and direction. When under stress or forced to take a defensive posture, head center people often feel useless or inadequate. Head center people tend to be driven by thinking (reasoning, wisdom, consciousness, rationality, will, power, self-esteem and logic), thereby failing to engage in life because of a fear of insufficient resources, fear of catastrophes or fear of sadness.

Heart Center (Types 3, 2 & 4): People who tend to be very caring and feeling. When under stress or forced to take a defensive posture, heart center people feel loneliness. Heart center people tend to be driven by their feelings (emotional, sensuality, sexuality, empathy, interpersonal relationships); either by avoiding them, lusting after them or needing to share them with others.

Arrows: The arrows are the key to using the Enneagram. They indicate your path of least resistance or point of disintegration (i.e. where you go when you are put on the defense or stressed) Being able to move against the arrow leads to evolvement and integration of your mind, body and spirit.

There are many, many nuances to the Enneagram. To get the most out of the Enneagram I highly recommend that you work with myself or another qualified Enneagram instructor, coach or therapist. You can find a list of qualified professionals at International Enneagram Association web site.